Indicator Capital, BNDES and Qualcomm Ventures launch the first fund in Latin America with a focus on the Internet of Things (IoT)

SÃO PAULO, May 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Indicator Capital, the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES), and Qualcomm Ventures LLC announced today the launch of the early-stage venture capital fund Indicator 2 IoT FIP, with a first-close of US$ 45 million (R$ 240 million), focused on Internet of Things (IoT) and connectivity in Latin America. In addition to the creators of the public bid: BNDES and Qualcomm Ventures, the fund has other five prominent investors: Banco do Brasil, Multilaser, Motorola, Lenovo, and Telefônica Ventures / Vivo, among other institutional and corporate investors.

Aimed at startups that develop services and products related to IoT and Connectivity, the fund promotes the National IoT Plan, accelerating strategic sectors, such as Agriculture, Health, Industry 4.0, Smart Cities, and Mobility. With this funding, Indicator Capital becomes the largest Brazilian venture capital manager in Latin America, specializing in IoT.

According to Thomas Bittar, one of the three founding partners of Indicator, "our objective was to launch a fund with at least US$ 22 million (R$ 120 million), but the high demand made it possible to close the fundraising with twice the original amount", he adds.

The fund is the result of a joint initiative by BNDES and Qualcomm Ventures, the investment arm of Qualcomm Incorporated, a world leader in next-generation wireless technologies that, in December 2019, launched a public call for tenders to select a manager to structure the newly created investment fund. Together, BNDES and Qualcomm Ventures made an initial investment of US$ 16 million (R$ 85 million).

With a duration of 10 years, the fund will invest in up to 30 early-stage startups (Series A), with an average ticket of US$ 1,9 million (R$ 10 million). "We intend to make seven investments by the end of 2021, playing a leadership role in IoT in Latin America. We are working with great dedication to placing Brazil definitively on the global map of Internet of Things", adds Derek Bittar, founding partner of Indicator Capital.

"From Silicon Valley, we monitor the main technological trends, maintaining relationships with world leaders in the sector. We apply our proprietary Building Value Together®️ methodology, contributing significantly to the development of startups. These investments will breed great national technology players in the next 5 to 10 years", reinforces Fabio de Paula.

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SOURCE Indicator Capital